Want to live longer? Get a dog

Last Update: June 20, 2018 at 11:55 am

Nov 17, 2017

SOURCE: CNN

The benefits that come with owning a dog are clear– physical activity, support, companionship — but owning a dog could literally be saving your life

Dog ownership is associated with a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease and death, finds a new study published Friday in Scientific Reports, a Swedish publication.

For people living alone, owning a dog can decrease their risk of death by 33% and their risk of cardiovascular related death by 36%, when compared to single individuals without a pet, according to the study. Chances of a heart attack were also found to be 11% lower.

Multi-person household owners also saw benefits, though to a lesser extent. Risk of death among these dog owners fell by 11% and their chances of cardiovascular death were 15% lower. But their risk of a heart attack was not reduced by owning a dog.

“A very interesting finding in our study was that dog ownership was especially prominent as a protective factor in persons living alone, which is a group reported previously to be at higher risk of cardiovascular disease and death than those living in a multi-person household,” said Mwenya Mubanga, an author on the study and PhD student at Uppsala University.

FULL STORY: http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/17/health/dog-owners-heart-disease-and-death/index.html